South Sudan peace deal at risk, RJMEC warns amid rising violence and political arrests

RJMEC Chairperson George Owino who warned the implementation of South Sudan's 2018 Revitalised Peace Agreement (R-ARCSS) at risk of collapse. (Photo: RJMEC South Sudan)

By Bashir Mbuthia
Monday, August 18, 2025

The warning was issued by Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) interim chairperson, Ambassador Major General (Rtd) George Aggrey Owino, during a briefing to the United Nations Security Council on Monday.

The oversight body monitoring the implementation of South Sudan's 2018 Revitalised Peace Agreement (R-ARCSS) has warned that the deal is at risk of collapse amid rising violence, political arrests, and repeated government violations.

The warning was issued by Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC) interim chairperson, Ambassador Major General (Rtd) George Aggrey Owino, during a briefing to the United Nations Security Council on Monday.

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According to Owino, the fragile situation in South Sudan worsened in March 2025, when a joint deployment of South Sudan People's Defence Forces (SSPDF) and Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army-in-Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) troops in Nassir, Upper Nile State, erupted into violent clashes.

"On 3rd and 4th of March, a Nuer militia, allegedly affiliated to the SPLM/A-IO (locally known as the 'White Army'), attacked an SSPDF garrison in Nasir, overran it, killed many soldiers and on 7th March, the garrison's commanding officer was also killed," he said.

The ambassador explained that the violence triggered a wider political crisis, with several senior SPLM/A-IO officials—including national ministers, Members of Parliament, and the group's Chief of Defence Forces—arrested and detained in Juba.

"In the days that followed, H.E. Dr. Riek Machar Teny, the First Vice President, a major peace partner under the R-ARCSS, was put under house arrest where he remains to date," he said.

Ambassador Owino also highlighted repeated violations of the permanent ceasefire, citing aerial bombardments of opposition-held areas by the SSPDF, clashes across multiple regions, and the unilateral deployment of Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF), which has drawn international criticism.

"Taken together, the clashes, deployment of UPDF, house arrest of the FVP, and detention of several senior SPLM/A-IO officials have created widespread fear, subsequently forcing many senior opposition figures into self-exile, including H.E. Dr. Riek Machar Teny's deputy, the Rt. Hon. Oyet Nathaniel Pierino, who is the acting chair of the SPLM-IO and who was recently dismissed from the position of First Deputy Speaker of the TNLA," he said.

Unilateral appointments and dismissals

The interim chairperson further accused South Sudan's transitional government of numerous unilateral appointments and dismissals at both national and state levels, violating the power-sharing arrangements under the 2018 peace deal.

He warned that these developments have "rendered the implementation of the R-ARCSS virtually untenable."

"The current situation and trajectory in the country, if not urgently addressed, risks reversing all that has been gained and may lead to a collapse of the R-ARCSS, which could return the country back to an armed conflict," he said.

"There is very little progress in terms of implementation of the critical pending tasks and preparation for the conduct of elections as scheduled for December 2026."

Owino called on the international community to support regional efforts for dialogue, press for the release of political detainees, and consider a high-level diplomatic mission to Juba to salvage the peace deal.

"In view of the aforementioned, RJMEC recommends the Council endorse the call by the IGAD Summit and the AUPSC to the South Sudanese government to de-escalate tensions, address the issue of the FVP and all the other detainees, embrace dialogue, and return to full and inclusive implementation of the R-ARCSS and adhere to its letter and spirit," said Aggrey.